Cape Town — The World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations agency which provides aid to millions of people, often in countries torn by conflict and instability, has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2020.
Tne Norwegian Nobel Committee announced in Oslo on Friday that it had made the award for the WFP's "efforts to combat hunger, for its contribution to bettering conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict."
The committee noted that the coronavirus pandemic has contributed to an upsurge in the number of hungry people, citing the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nigeria, South Sudan and Burkina Faso as among countries where "the combination of violent conflict and the pandemic has led to a dramatic rise in the number of people living on the brink of starvation."
"In the face of the pandemic," the committee added, "the World Food Programme has demonstrated an impressive ability to intensify its efforts. As the organisation itself has stated, 'Until the day we have a medical vaccine, food is the best vaccine against chaos.'"
Calling for financial support for the WFP, the committee said if it did not receive more funds, there is a danger of "a hunger crisis of inconceivable proportions" in the world.
"The link between hunger and armed conflict is a vicious circle: war and conflict can cause food insecurity and hunger, just as hunger and food insecurity can cause latent conflicts to flare up and trigger the use of violence. We will never achieve the goal of zero hunger unless we also put an end to war and armed conflict," the committee added.
